I think its time for a Solar Panel

[adventureduo]

105 degrees outside in the desert (in the AM) (for 3 days), ARB freezer fridge running full blaze... LED/HALOGEN lights at night. 3rd day morning rolls around in triple digits and it would be nice to wake up to coffee like every morning. Inverter is yelling at me with it's safety beep. It's under power and it tries to give 1500 watts. I check the monitor, yep, 11.3 and dropping getting hit hard with the coffee maker. So it makes two cups and then i shut her down. 1 person doesnt get coffee today.

I think its time for a 80 watt/5 amp panel.

PS, oh yeah we are running (2) Lifeline batteries.

PS, yea i have boiled coffee before the trailer > dont remind me lol

Just sayin' it's time for that solar panel i wanted a week ago before the trip

 

[01001010]

I know that Brunton makes some, but are there any others worthy of trip-abuse?

 

[DaktariEd]

I started with this thread...
And I did this...

HTH...

 

[adventureduo]

I started with this thread...
And I did this...

HTH...

Ed, i've looked at those already@west marine and they look very nice and well built. However, i have a solar dist. box already built into the trailer nose box with a port (marios old trailer), so all i need is the solar panel itself. I would like to get one that runs enough juice to where i can run my whole trailer off of it and 80 watts/5amp would cut it. Im thinking Kyocera. There's a place in Arizona for $400+ that will ship one.

Anyways, just funny, i wanted a solar panel before we left (just because) and found out it would have made that 3rd cup of coffee(important!)!!

 

[sgt rock]

the smell of coffee

socal'

i have had a coleman coffee maker that comes out pretty fast (ok it uses propane and its not on a timer) but the smell sure gets you going as the bacon and eggs are cooking.

and you can play frank sinatra's coffee song as the sun rises while brewing some joe!

 

[RAM5500 CAMPERTHING]

105 degrees outside in the desert (in the AM) (for 3 days), ARB freezer fridge running full blaze... LED/HALOGEN lights at night. 3rd day morning rolls around in triple digits

What the hell you doing camping in that kinda weather anyway? :sombrero:

 

[Martyn]

Make sure the frame of the panel is strong enough so you can modify it to make a self contained stand. The last thing you want is to be propping up your panel against some rocks and having to move it every hour.

We use the Carmanah products because the external frame is so much stronger than most other brands.

 

[jomobco]

Just a thought but I used one of my extra wires inside my trailer cable for power from my rig. That way whenever my trailer is plugged to my jeep it's charging. Granted there are times when I'm unhooked for a while but if I get low I just plug the trailer back in and run the jeep for a bit.

Hey Ed, how is that charger on top of your Maggiolina working out? No cracking or leaks? Any close-up pics? I was wondering how well the top would hold up to having something mounted on it.

 

[Rezarf <><]

What about instant coffee crystals

 

[elcoyote]

105 degrees outside in the desert (in the AM) (for 3 days), ARB freezer fridge running full blaze... LED/HALOGEN lights at night. 3rd day morning rolls around in triple digits and it would be nice to wake up to coffee like every morning. Inverter is yelling at me with it's safety beep. It's under power and it tries to give 1500 watts. I check the monitor, yep, 11.3 and dropping getting hit hard with the coffee maker. So it makes two cups and then i shut her down. 1 person doesnt get coffee today.

I think its time for a 80 watt/5 amp panel.

PS, oh yeah we are running (2) Lifeline batteries.

PS, yea i have boiled coffee before the trailer > dont remind me lol

Just sayin' it's time for that solar panel i wanted a week ago before the trip

Wholly smokes buddy, you need to go on an energy diet!...running the fridge in AZ in August and charging four 18V power tools we never dipped below 11.8....Got a particle beam splitter hooked to that thing or what?

 

[tdesanto]

Talk to Mario about the Carmanah panels they sell. They even build a frame/ easel for the 80W panel.

Also, lose the 110VAC coffee maker. That thing draws a ton of power. I think the range is from 1000-1500W at 110V. That's a minimum of 9+ amps not including the energy wasted in the power inverter (about .5-.6amps).

You could boil water in a pot or kettle and pour it into one of these if you want. Or get a french press.

 

[egn]

Beside looking for solar panels you should also look into other solutions to your energy problem.

The energy diet mentioned is certainly one way to go. If you you want to keep your appliances then look into optimizing the use. I especially think about the fridge freezer. The fridge freezer is one of the largest energy users when camping. The power in watt it uses is low, but it uses that for a considerable time 24 hours a day. If it is hot it can easily suck 50 Ah/d from your battery.

You can reduce the usage by using additional isolation, putting the fridge into the shade, allow the heat that comes form the compressor disappear easily by improving the cooling.

You can further reduce the draw from the battery by cooling it down as low as possible when you have power available, like when driving. The cold storage can be improved by having the fridge really full at this time. Water is the the cheapest storage medium so fill every cubic inch with beer. :sombrero: When there is no extra power available then turn the thermostat up to a point where the fridge is just cool enough. The cold stored will keep the compressor idle for hours. Just avoid to reload the fridge with warm items until you have power available again.

You should also think about a way to charge the batteries faster and really full when you move and have power available. Remember that the fridge also needs power and if you have long thin cable runs then the voltage drop is high and the batteries in the trailer are not really charged. To improve charging you should use wire as thick as possible and look also at using better connectors. A further improvement would be a device that boosts the voltage to at least 14.4 V for charging. This may bring much more per invested buck instead of buying a solar panel. But it depends on how you normally travel and on how large the battery capacity really is. If you move often and the battery capacity is large enough to cover the time in between you probably need no solar power. But you can also combine both.

If you would like to use solar panels then don't fix them permanently on your trailer. As others have noted you are much more flexible in placement your equipment when they are removable. So you can place your trailer with the fridge into the shade and face the solarpanel optimally to the sun. I would recomment to take a panel with a very high efficiency, no amorphous panel. The smaller panel per W is much easier to handle.

I hope this info is of help. Please feel free to ask further questions.

 

[Martyn]

Basically running 110 volt appliances is your problem.

 

[adventureduo]

Basically running 110 volt appliances is your problem.

It's just one appliance and it's only for 5-10 mins every morning. Not like im running power tools or a tv every day all day. Normally it's fine, but in this case the extreme heat made the fridge run way more than normal.

I have a percolator to back up on anyways.

No big deal, like i said.. i was in the market for a panel anyways. This just sealed the deal for my next purchase :wings:

Just thought it was a interesting observation from the triple digit heat.

 

[Andrew Walcker]

I notice a huge difference in the longevity of the trailer batter based on the ambient tempature and even more if my kids are with me. I think the biggest loss in battery efficiency comes from how many times the fridge opens and closes. My son is famous for standing in front of the home fridge with the door open for minutes at a time and I have to constantly remind him to make up his mind of what he wants prior to opening the door